Hot Hand at Canterbury: A Night at the Races in Shakopee

Photography and words by Jason Alexander / MN LOCAL & LIVE

Last night I pulled into Canterbury Park on a warm Saturday evening with a camera bag over my shoulder and a vague idea what I was walking into. I left a few hours later having shot from more vantage points than I can count, having given someone a winning tip on a race I didn't bet myself, and having watched two strangers I'll call Rick and Morty take a victory lap where they had absolutely no business being in. It was a great night.

Meet Jeff Maday

Jeff Maday, Canterbury Park's Media Relations Manager, met me at the winner's circle before the first race. Jeff has been part of the Canterbury fabric for 32 years, starting out in the stables and working his way up over three decades to become one of the most knowledgeable and respected people at the track. Last summer he was inducted into the Canterbury Park Hall of Fame, an honor that tells you everything you need to know about how deeply this place runs in him.

Jeff introduced me to Ashley, who has been at Canterbury for all of three weeks and was already fluent in the geography, the access points, the people and the rhythms of a race night. She served as my guide for the evening, and she was outstanding at it. Between the two of them I got to see a side of Canterbury Park that most people in the grandstand never know exists.

The Full Tour

Ashley took me everywhere.

We started in the paddock, where horses are saddled and jockeys get their instructions before each race. Watching that process up close, the quiet focus of the trainers, the controlled energy of the horses (sometimes not), gives you a completely different appreciation for what you're about to see on the track. I set up in the photo pits along the front stretch, where you're under the rail level with the field thundering past close enough to feel the ground move. We crossed the track into the infield for a look at the races from the inside out, a perspective that completely changes how you read the shape of a race.

Then we went up. Ashley got me access to the top of the scoreboard for a birds-eye view of the whole oval, the massive horses looking small from up there, the crowd spread out across the grandstand across the track, the late-day sun still warm and golden over the whole scene. Coming back down, we cut through the tunnel that runs under the grandstand connecting the paddock side to the track side, a hidden artery through the belly of the building that lets staff and credentialed guests move without fighting through the crowd. Every track has a public face. This was the backstage.

The Woman to Watch

The first race of the night belonged to Kelsi Harr.

If you spend any time around Canterbury Park, you'll learn that name. Harr is an Arkansas-born jockey who has been riding at Canterbury since 2018, splitting her seasons between Shakopee and Oaklawn Park back home. She made history at Oaklawn as the first female jockey to surpass a million dollars in winnings during a single meet there. She's the real deal, and on Saturday night she announced herself early.

She won the first race. She placed in the second. She won the third. She showed in the fourth. By mid-card she had quietly become the story of the evening, and only some of us in the crowd had figured it out yet.

I was one of them.

Rick, Morty, and the Tip I Didn't Bet

Before the third race, I was near the entrance when two guys came through the gate, fresh to the evening and already in fine spirits. I never caught their names, so I've been calling them Rick and Morty in my head, because they had the look of men who were there for a good time and maybe a small misadventure.

Rick asked me who I liked for the upcoming race. I told him I hadn't had a chance to check the paddock for that race, but I said this: the rider of the number 4 horse is the one to watch. She won the first race, placed in the second, and she has the hot hand tonight.

He nodded. I moved on. I didn't bet.

The number 4 horse won the third race. Kelsi Harr, of course.

I ran into Rick and Morty again later in the night. Neither of them had bet it either. We stood there for a moment in shared regret, the kind that only happens at a racetrack, where the difference between a good story and a great one is about two minutes and some indecision at the betting window.

Later I spotted them in the winner's circle. Selfies with their group, big grins, no business being there. Confirmation there was a little misadventure in them after all!

Canterbury is That Kind of Place

Here's something nobody tells you before your first trip: Canterbury Park is an extremely good place to feel like you know what you're doing, right up until the moment you don't.

There's something about walking the paddock, studying the program, watching a horse warm up before a race that makes you feel like you've developed an eye for this. Your reads feel sharp. Your instincts feel real. Then your "sure thing" comes in fourth, just out of the money, and you're standing at the rail quietly recalculating your whole approach to life. It happens to everyone. It happens fast. And somehow it makes you want to come right back.

Canterbury Park runs thoroughbred and quarter horse racing, with live racing on select Wednesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays, and Sundays from May 23 through September 19. The Saturday night atmosphere in particular has an energy that's hard to compare to much else in the Twin Cities. The vibe on a warm evening with a big field of horses going to post is genuinely electric.

More Than Just Racing

One thing that came up in conversation with Ashley that stuck with me: Canterbury does a lot of work to take care of the people who make the whole operation run. The kitchen cooks regularly for the entire staff on site, including jockeys and the stable workers who are out there at sunrise every morning and rarely get a second thought from the people in the grandstand. Kids come in for cooking lessons with the track's chefs, an introduction to the kitchen that's as much about community as it is about food.

Beyond that, Canterbury Park is one of Minnesota's few publicly traded companies and pledges to return up to 5% of its pre-tax profits to the community every year through the Canterbury Cares program. The Canterbury Park Minnesota Fund has distributed more than a million dollars in grants since its founding in 2003, supporting equine causes, responsible gaming programs, and community organizations across the state. They also run the Leg Up Fund specifically to support injured and disabled jockeys, and they bring in volunteer groups from nonprofits and community organizations to work events and raise money for their causes. It's a place that actually thinks about the people inside it and the community around it.

Go

Canterbury Park is at 1100 Canterbury Road in Shakopee, about 25 minutes southwest of Minneapolis. Live racing runs through September 19th on select Wednesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays, and Sundays. The card casino is open 24/7 year-round if you want to make a night of it regardless of the racing calendar.

Get there early enough to walk the paddock before the first race. Grab a program and learn how to read it. Find a spot at the rail for at least one race, close enough to feel the horses go by. And if you see a jockey having a big night early in the card, trust your instincts.

Then bet on it. Don't be like me.

A full gallery of photos from Saturday night are posted here.

Jason Alexander is a Minneapolis-based commercial photographer and the founder of MN LOCAL & LIVE.